Is Turkey De-Europeanising?

This comprehensive edited volume conceptually develops the notion of 'de-Europeanisation' as an important development in the literature on Europeanisation, and applies it specifically to the case of Turkey. 'De-Europeanisation' is defined as the loss or weakening of the EU/Europe as a normative/political context and as a reference point in domestic settings and national public debates of both candidate and member countries. 'De-Europeanisation' manifests itself in two basic ways: as the weakening of the appeal and influential capacity of European institutions, policies, norms and values, leading to a retreat of EU/ Europe as a normative/political context for society and politics in a candidate/member state; and as growing scepticism and indifference in a given society towards the EU/Europe, risking the legitimacy of the EU/Europe as a reference point in cases even where reform is incurred. Using this concept, the authors analyse the diminishing impact of the EU in Turkish governance and politics after the opening of accession negotiations in October 2005. The relevance of 'de-Europeanisation' is investigated through ten chapters focusing on key policy areas including education, migration, democracy, the rule of law and media freedoms, and a number of key actors including civil society organisations, political parties and political leaders. This book was originally published as a special issue of South European Society and Politics.

Alper Kaliber is Associate Professor in the Department of International Relations at Istanbul Kemerburgaz University, Turkey. His areas of research include critical and regional security studies, European security, Europeanisation, the Cyprus conflict, Turkish foreign policy and Ottoman-Turkish modernisation. He has received several grants and awards including the Young Scientist Award from Turkey's Science Academy (BAGEP) in 2014. Senem Aydin-Düzgit is Associate Professor at Sabanci University, Turkey. She is the author of Turkey and the European Union (with Nathalie Tocci, 2015) and Constructions of European Identity: Debates and Discourses on Turkey and the EU (2012).

Introduction: Encounters with Europe in an Era of Domestic and International Turmoil: Is Turkey a De-Europeanising Candidate Country? Senem Aydin-Düzgit and Alper Kaliber 1. From AKP's 'Conservative Democracy' to 'Advanced Democracy': Shifts and Challenges in the Debate on 'Europe' Basak Alpan 2. Shifting Logics: The Discourses of Turkish Political Elites on EU Accession Canan Balkir and Sedef Eylemer 3. De-Europeanisation through Discourse: A Critical Discourse Analysis of AKP's Election Speeches Senem Aydin-Düzgit 4. De-Europeanisation of Civil Society and Public Debates in Turkey: The Kurdish Question Revisited Alper Kaliber 5. Europeanisation and De-Europeanisation Dynamics in Turkey: The Case of Environmental Organisations Büke Bosnak 6. Policy Transfer and Discursive De-Europeanisation: Higher Education from Bologna to Turkey Özge Onursal-Besgül 7. Why the EU Still Matters in Turkish Domestic Politics: Insights from Recent Reforms in Migration Policy Alexander Bürgin 8. De-Europeanisation or Counter-Conduct? Turkey's Democratisation and the EU Münevver Cebeci 9. De-Europeanisation in Turkey: The Case of the Rule of Law Beken Saatçioglu 10. Europeanisation or De-Europeanisation? Media Freedom in Turkey (1999-2015) Gözde Yilmaz